Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-04-23

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Institutions will find a solution on Greek contingency measures, says Dijsselbloem

[02] ND leader: Cyprus' success shows that when there's a will, a country can exit a bailout program sooner

[03] Deal is difficult but will be beneficial for Greece once achieved, says source

[04] 53,817 refugees and migrants in Greece on Saturday - data

[01] Institutions will find a solution on Greek contingency measures, says Dijsselbloem

"[According to the Greek side] there are things that are possible and others which are impossible for legal reasons. The institutions will find a solution," he told journalists, adding that a mechanism has to be designed by the institutions that will restore trust both in the framework of the Eurogroup and for market investors. "This would create conditions of stability for a longer period," he said.

Dijsselbloem also noted that while there are liquidity problems in Greece, the economy is "in the safe hands of the finance minister".

[02] ND leader: Cyprus' success shows that when there's a will, a country can exit a bailout program sooner

Commenting on the challenges facing Europe, Mitsotakis said the first one is and remains the unfinished monetary union and the second is the management of the refugee crisis.

"Unfortunately, Europe has proven it doesn't have the necessary fast reflexes despite the best efforts of the relevant Commissioner, Dimitris Avramopoulos," he said, adding that the next challenge will be how Europe will deal with the guarding of European borders.

On this issue, the leader of ND said a proposal for the uniform guarding of land and sea borders is in the right direction. "Greece, the country that found itself in the front line of the big battle between populism and common sense … will send the message to Europe that populism and easy promises cannot be the answer to problems. The pendulum of populism will swing back to policies of common sense and moderation."

[03] Deal is difficult but will be beneficial for Greece once achieved, says source

These measures will only be implemented if the Greek primary surplus is lower than 3.5 pct of GDP in 2018.

According to the same sources, if the deal is achieved, it will be beneficial for Greece because it will unlock immediately the disbursement of the next loan tranche. This tranche, which would have originally been disbursed last fall when the program review was supposed to have finished, would total 5.4 billion euros, but considering the delays, the institutions want to increase it.

Furthermore, if the IMF is satisfied with the deal in question and its board approves Greece's new program, it will also disburse its first tranche. With this money, Greece will not only be able to service its current loan obligations, but will also repay a large part of its outstanding debts to the private sector, which will help the Greek economy.

Finally, Greece will also benefit from the start of talks on its debt. A European official noted that even if it is not at all clear which decisions will be taken now, which before the end of the program and which when there will be "a real problem" in 2023, the Eurozone aims to create the necessary safety environment for investors. "This conversation must take place in phases, so as to keep a level of pressure on the Greek side," the source said.

According to Eurozone sources, member-states asked Greece to submit specific proposals for possible contingency measures which will be reliable and have some automation elements. The same sources said it is still being discussed who will have the responsibility for the activation of this mechanism, but the data that will be used will be those of Eurostat. One idea is to do the first test a year from now, when Eurostat's data for 2016 are published.

[04] 53,817 refugees and migrants in Greece on Saturday - data

The distribution is as follows: 7,899 people are located on the islands, 14,359 are in the wider Attica region, with 3,294 camping in Piraeus following mass transfers to organized hospitality camps.

In central Greece, there are 1,923 refugees and migrants and 338 in the south of the country. Northern Greece in general is currently hosting 29,298 people, with 10,232 recorded in the makeshift of Idomeni and another 1,191 in the nearby gas station of Polykastro.

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